Sunday, January 13, 2013

Fourthgradeisms

If you want to be creative, stay in part
a child, with the creativity and invention that characterizes children before
they are deformed by adult society.

~Jean Piaget

What is a Fourthgradeism?That's unintentional original thoughts that fly from my student's mouths that leave me laughing as I gently correct their misunderstanding.

For example, this one Fourthgradeism happened when we were reviewing
abbreviations in English. Unrelated to the English lesson, I made conversation on
the playground, and asked, “What part of town do you live in?” She answered, “Right
by CARMEN DOCTOR. “

A student asked me, what
I wanted for Christmas when I was ten. Was it money? I responded that “back then” you
received presents and not cash. However, I
let him know that my grandfather gave me $50 and this was a BIG deal because
thirty years ago fifty dollars was a lot of money. He thought about that, then asked, “Is that because of inflammation?”

“HUH?” I thought. Oh yes … Inflation, my friend, it’s
inflation!

Another example? My students had to write a pen pal letter to
practice basic letter structure. I cracked up when one of the letters I reviewed was addressed as follows:

Dear Unibrow, (yes UNIBROW!) Another one was being sent to MATILDA!

And finally, while reviewing California History and the road
that, in 1769, Portola and Father Junipero Serra traveled on their expedition
north along the Mexican BAJA peninsula ... a student’s hand shot up and he asked. “Is this the
same guy who invented BAJA FRESH?”

Yes, these are the children that are yet to be altered by
adult society! I love working in fourth grade!

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In Life, Balance is Everything!

Hop on!

Riding a unicycle is like life. To be successful and enjoy the ride, they both require tremendous balance and focus. I sit up tall, shoulders back and imagine I am holding one of my young boys under each arm. My best-friend-techie-husband’s hand on my seat (hubba, hubba) to guide me, and my two wiener dogs running alongside, looking like double Dumbos. As I train to ride Blanche, my unicycle, in a half-marathon, I think how good God is as the breeze blows my brown hair, a big smile on my face. Come along for a thrilling one-wheel ride while I do my best to maintain balance... but keep an open mind, there is always something new to learn!